The Winter Soldier
by GeorgegioG
Summary: Trapped in a time that he doesn't belong in, Steve has never been more miserable. But meeting friends, old and new, including a certain niece of Peggy's, might get Steve to see that he isn't as alone as he thought.


Another Day

Disclaimer: Marvel owns everything, not me.

**_The North Atlantic, 1944:_**

_Above the North Atlantic, a single fighter plane flew across the dark sky. Its target was a single HYDRA prison camp, circling around the mountains that hide the base. The pilot took a moment to glance behind him. The elite squadron known as The Howling Commandos sat behind the pilot. _

"_Those things are goin' to kill you Dum." Bucky Barnes commentated. The older man in front of him simply gave him a grin._

"_Naw, Bucky. Those things those HYDRA bastards are going to shoot at us are going to kill us." Gabriel Jones shot back, checking his weapon so that it was fully prepared for the assault. James Montgomery Falsworth made a grunt of agreement as he glanced at his leader, Captain America._

_Captain America was going over the layout of the base they were about to invade, his star shield was resting against his legs, and his helmet was on the chair next to him.. Falsworth couldn't help but roll his eyes. "Cap, we've been over this a thousand times. You've already made up at least three battle plans for this."_

_Cap's blue eyes never strayed from the paper. Jim Morita and Jacques Dernier were already in a conversation, talking casually about their chances, which were high in their opinion._

"_Captain, Howard Stark is on the line." The pilot called back. Cap placed the layout he was reading down and put his helmet on, and strapped his shield on his left arm. Going to the back of the plane, he answered the radio._

"_What is it Howard?" Cap asked, knowing that they were close to attack._

"_Bad news Cap. You guys are going to have to jump out of the plane earlier than expected. HYDRA had a spy that alerted them to the assault. They're getting ready as we speak. You have to jump __**now!"**_

_Cap cursed under his breath as he hung up. He turned back to his team, taking out his M1911 from the holster on his waist. The Howling Commandos immediately stood up, getting their weapons ready and preparing the parachutes. _

"_Get us over the base, now!" Cap yelled at the pilot, who sent him an incredulous look. Nervously, the pilot flew faster and managed to get to the base earlier than planned. Cap opened the door, and jumped out. _

"_Is he crazy?! He forgot his parachute!" The pilot yelled. To his shock, the Howling Commandos simply laughed._

"_Have you ever seen Cap in missions?" Jacques asked with a grin. The pilot didn't answer. _

"_Cap doesn't need a parachute." Dugan said as he jumped out, with the others following._

_The Howling Commandos landed right behind Cap, who was charging at the HYDRA soldiers, using his shield to deflect the blue blasts. _

"_WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR LADIES?! __**CHRISTMAS?!" **__Cap bellowed as he smacked a HYDRA soldier with his shield while simultaneously shooting another with his side arm. The Commandos ran right behind their Captain, unleashing gun fire on their enemies as the explosions and blue energy blasts surrounded them. Cap threw his sheild, and the satisfing sound of his weapon hitting an enemy's head filled Cap's ears as he shot down another soldier, before effortlessly slipping his shield on his left arm when it came back to him. He heard a grunt to his left, as another HYDRA soldier fell, and managed to nod his head in Bucky's directionas a thanks for saving him. Cap blocked another blast, and twisted his head a little to see his team getting closer. They all stood next him, opening fire, constantly ducking, dodging explosions from grenades, trying to crack a joke here or there..._

Steve Rogers gasped as he sat up in his bed. For a moment, he glanced around the room, trying to process what was happening, and his muscles tensed. He didn't know where he was. He wasn't in his room, or in a medical bed. Then it all came back to him, and his heart sank. He wasn't in 1944; he was in 2012, in his room in Avengers slowly laid back down, trying to get grip on himself.

It took all he could not to scream. He didn't belong here, not in this time. The world was reliant on technology now, most of it Steve _still _couldn't understand. Morals and values weren't as high was they were in his time. Not to mention, back in his time he was shy around girls, but now he was appalled at how little clothing they wore, and how…_ loud_ they were. Except for some women like Natasha and Pepper (and Jane when Thor brought her to the Tower) it seemed as if women of this time have no respect for themselves. Not like the women in the forties, not like…

_Peggy._

Steve rubbed his eyes. He would not cry. Captain America doesn't cry. But it was just so _hard _sometimes. He never got to dance with Peggy, never got to tell her he loved her, never got to see the end of the war and celebrate it with his friends, never got to buy that house with the white pickect fence and the cherry blossom trees with Peggy and live the rest of his days there.

No, he couldn't think like that. He couldn't think of what he wanted, or how he thought things should have gone. It only made things worse. He had to toughen up, rebuild the walls around his heart. Allow himself to be an icon instead of a person. Run around with a shield telling people what to do until he loses his usefulness and finally be reunited with Bucky and Peggy and his parents and The Howling Commandos. But until then, he'll just convince himself that he's needed, and that his friends who died wouldn't want him to give up. That'll keep him going, at least for a while.

Steve got out of bed, opening the blinds to allow some sunlight in the room, before getting dressed and fixing his bed. Opening the door and stepping out, he headed to the elevator. He glanced at the panel before pressing the right numbers. He vaguely remember Bucky telling him when they were younger that the wouldn't need to use stairs in the future...

No, he has to stop thinking like that.

Oh yes. They were the Avengers, but that didn't mean they were his team. They were practically _gods _compared to him. Tony could defeat enemies in seconds when it would've taken Steve minutes. Thor could annihilate an entire army with on slam of his hammer if he wanted. Hulk would tear his way through enemies like they were made of cardboard. Natasha could defeat an enemy in a blink of an eye, and complete training exercises faster than Steve ever could. Clint could take out enemies Steve couldn't even see and they wouldn't know he was there.

The Howling Commandos might not have been as strong as him physically, but at least they were a team he felt comfortable leading. They were the best soldiers he had ever seen. They took out enemies with speed and precision. They saved him many more times than he saved them. They were respectful and had a sense of honor. They could drink and have fun despite of everything they've seen. They gave him support and covered him while they were fighting in the foxholes together.

The Howling Commandos were his team, not the Avengers. They were supposed to be, but they too different.

Steve walked into the kitchen. Bruce and Thor were talking about the science that Asguard used, Natasha and Clint were in an hand-to-hand combat match, and Tony was making coffee. Tony glanced at Steve when he entered the room.

"Well, if it isn't the star spangled man with a plan. Decided to come down and dine with us rather than mope in your room?" Tony remarked.

It took all of Steve's self-control not to lash out at the man. He had expected Tony to be something like Howard, but he wasn't. Howard was kind and funny and helped Steve in both the battle field and in normal everyday life. Tony was sarcastic and snarky, but just because he looked like Howard doesn't mean he was Howard. Tony always disobeyed Cap's orders and took out enemies just to prove he was better than Steve.

Steve sighed and sat down at the table, staring blankly at the wood.

"How are you doing today Captain of America?" Thor asked, his voice jaring Steve out of another daydream that he was about to have. Steve blinked before anwsering.

"I'm fine Thor."

Just another day.

A/N: Okay, a few things:

I know the "Are you waiting for Christmas ?" line was out of character, but given that Steve was in a battlefield and had to command people, I don't think he would be nice about it. Not to mention, although I like Chris Evans as Cap, I've never seen him act like a commander in The First Avenger, besides making battle strategies and being in the front of every scene in the montage.

I will have a flashback every chapter, because it isn't a Captain America story without flashbacks.

The Avengers will be in this a lot, and they do play an important role in the story.

Please review.


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